Rise and Die! Chapter 6
Draco was left open-mouthed and then in three seconds, became very, very, very angry. Damn that woman! Damn her damn her damn her! How dare she leave him here? How dare she?
He looked around the muggle neighborhood in desperation. Nice suburban houses that looked pretty similar (all large and beautiful). Good gardens, a few pets outside, and of course… he looked up at the sky and saw it was about to rain. Of course. Of course that would happen.
Damn English weather…
A few minutes later, he was still standing there, completely drenched, sputtering, and mumbling curses directed at a woman who wasn't there. He hated her, the wench! How dare she leave him here! He looked around for any sign of where he was and found none. He could be anywhere. Any. Bloody. Where.
And then he got a brilliant idea. Granted, it wasn't exactly brilliant, but for someone who had been standing out in the pouring rain for a full five minutes, was completely soaked and bordering on insane, this was a fantastic idea. With a sprint he ran up to the Grangers' door and rang the doorbell.
Her mother opened it up. "Draco?" she questioned.
"Hi, Mrs. Granger," Draco smiled as warmly as he could muster, which was still a rather low-wattage smile because he was extremely upset at the moment.
"What are you doing here?" she gasped. "Well, never you mind, you're soaked, poor thing! Come in here instantly."
Draco obliged and stepped in, feeling very, very wet.
"I'll get you towels," Mrs. Granger promised and began to scurry away.
"No, it's okay… I'll just use a quick drying spell." Even as the words left his mouth, Draco cursed himself. And then cursed Hermione Granger because it was entirely her fault that he had forgotten he had a wand on him.
After performing said spell, Draco attempted to ask Mrs. Granger exactly where she was located, but she still fussed. "Oh, you look dry, but I'm sure you caught a cold. Please, have some tea."
"I'll pass," he insisted politely. "Seriously, I just wanted to know where…this is. I know, it's a very silly question, but, er, Hermione was so excited to show me off to you two that she neglected to tell me where this was… and now I can't get home."
Mrs. Granger looked perplexed. "That doesn't sound like Hermione at all," she mused. "That girl is just too kind for her own good; I tell you… she must really be in love with you to forget details! Hermione is very detail-oriented."
Draco winced and then promptly smiled on cue. "Oh, yes she is," he replied. "Er, so where are we?"
"Where is Hermione?" Mrs. Granger suddenly asked. "What's gotten into me today; that's the first thing I ought to have asked you! Where is she?"
"She went home," Draco muttered. Couldn't she just please tell him already? Honestly!
"Home?! But why are you still here?"
"Just a little quarrel," Draco brushed it off. "It's just… she wanted to go, um, yes, furniture shopping and I preferred to stay home… perhaps you are well acquainted with my wife's fiery temper?"
Mrs. Granger laughed. "You poor thing! She simply left you? The nerve! Why, have some crumpets, some scones… I feel absolutely terrible on her behalf. The way she's treating you… I'll have to have a word with her."
Draco's smile this time was quite genuine. "Yes, do," he grinned. "And I will have some crumpets. And scones."
So Draco sat down and enjoyed Mrs. Granger's cooking. Hermione could wait.
-------------------------------------------------------
Hermione stomped into her house, feeling enraged at Draco's cheek. "Honestly," she mumbled to herself, "The nerve of that boy… didn't his parents teach him any manners?"
"We did, actually."
Hermione shrieked and dropped her purse. Heart beat racing she turned around and came face to face with a blonde haired woman that Hermione instantly knew was Narcissa Malfoy.
"You scared me," Hermione stuttered. "Mrs. Malfoy."
"Please," Narcissa smirked. "Call me Narcissa."
I don't like this, Hermione thought. Draco, come here right now. Then of course there was that little matter of the whole she'd-left-him-there-thing. And even if he did manage to get home, he'd apparate to his own house, not hers.
"Look," she began uncomfortably, "I am most upset about this myself. Nobody is happy and it's all because of your damne—your pureblood laws."
"I know," Narcissa's eyes glittered. "Come along, Miss Granger, you've been invited to the Malfoy mansion."
"I'd really rather not," Hermione started, but it was too late. Narcissa had grabbed her arm in a vice-like grip and before she knew it she was in a formal sitting room in what she presumed was the Malfoy mansion.
"Blinky, get Lucius," Narcissa pointed to a house-elf cowering in the corner. Hermione immediately felt horribly angry, but decided that now was not the best time to advertise a society she had founded as a twelve-year-old.
The house-elf disappeared and Hermione pursed her lips. "Mrs. Malfoy—Narcissa…I have to be home. I don't see how any of this concerns me. You have your little divorce law and that's that. Now I must be gone."
"No, Miss Granger," Lucius entered with a nasty grin. "Oh, wait. Now you're the younger Mrs. Malfoy, correct?"
Hermione balled her fists in anger but didn't say anything.
Lucius glared at her. "We're under the impression that you, dear mudblood, are a researcher."
Hermione frowned. "Yes, but I don't see what that has to do with anything."
"Just wait," Narcissa scowled deeply. "Lucius and I believe there is no way for a pureblood to have a divorce, but we are going to do our best to try. We need you to research as well."
Hermione tapped her foot to portray annoyance, but in reality, she was thrilled. "There might be a way out?" she questioned.
"We don't know," Lucius looked very upset, "but if there is we are determined to find a loophole."
"Well, I suppose I'll help research… but I don't have any idea where to start," Hermione granted them.
Narcissa frowned. "We didn't give you a choice; you're going to research regardless of how you feel about it… and the best place to start is our library, isn't it, Lucius?"
"Yes, darling, of course… then again, you haven't set foot in it in years. However, dear mudblood—"
"The name," Hermione growled fiercely, "is Hermione. If you cannot possibly bear to call me that, Mr. Malfoy, calling me by my last name should suffice."
Lucius spoke in a very silky voice. "I couldn't possibly bear to call you by your last name," he said softly, and then barked, "because it is Malfoy! MALFOY!" He seemed to lose it for a moment and then regained control of himself with a few shushes from Narcissa. "Very well. Hermione it is," he spat the name as if it were poison. "You will come by here at five every evening and research for at least two hours."
"That's ridiculous!" Hermione protested. "I cannot possibly. I have thousands of things to do… first off, I don't even get off of work until six-thirty… and secondly, I am not researching for two hours. I am determined to make this a minor setback. My life will continue in the same fashion."
"Hermione," Narcissa smiled evilly, "Malfoy wives do not work."
"Another thing," Lucius added with a grin just as wicked, "You will definitely be living with our son. Shame enough that he has married a mudblood—we'll cut out at least a quarter of his inheritance, if not more—worse if she doesn't live with him. The fact that you two are not in love and did not have a perfectly wonderful, sober wedding will not leak out to the press. You are under my orders to show to the public that you are in love and that means that you will be living with him!"
"You're okay with this?" Hermione asked incredulously, unable to comprehend the words she was hearing.
"Mudblood—oh excuse me, Hermione," although Lucius didn't look sorry at all, "It is less of a disgrace to the family name if my son has married a mudblood witch for love, rather than part of his act as a drunk man."
"So it's all about family name, then?" Hermione scowled fiercely. "That's ridiculous."
"Ridiculous as it may be," Narcissa said coldly, "That's the way it is. You're moving in. If you want I can send you some house-elves to help."
Lucius gave Narcissa a grade-A evil look, but she ignored it. Hermione frowned. "Can I have some human beings to help me? Paid human beings?"
Narcissa snorted. Lucius began with an "Ungrateful little—", but Narcissa cut him off. "If that's what you wish, preposterous as it is. I have three maids. Use them," she shot heatedly.
"I will," Hermione gave her a look of loathing. "Just have them apparate to my house. You apparently know where it is!"
Angrily she apparated home, still infuriated with Draco and his annoying family. What Narcissa and Lucius had proposed hadn't been all that bad or anything; it was just that their manner was horribly rude and it all boiled down to the fact that this was Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy.
Shortly after the maids apparated to her house and together the three of them moved all of her treasured items (and some not-so-treasured items, like that horrendous lampshade that Ron had given her that she was just too sentimental about to throw away). The whole process took an even two hours, even with the aid of magic.
And Draco still hadn't appeared.
Now Hermione hated to admit it, but she did have a conscience and she was getting very, very worried. What if something had happened to him? He was a bit lost, of course, and what if he'd wandered down the wrong way and gotten into a brawl with some drunken man and something horrible had happened to him…
Much as she found him absolutely irritating, she didn't want him dead. She didn't want him dead at all.
Anxious she decided to just apparate back to her parents' house and see what had become of him. Perhaps he was still sitting there, although that was quite unlikely.
A few moments later, she was standing on her street. She noticed that although the sky had cleared up, it must have been raining because everything was absolutely soaking wet. Oh no, she thought miserably. He was cold and wet and lonely and hungry…
Grow up, you sod! She scolded herself as realization hit on her. Of course he wasn't cold or wet or hungry or even lonely (transfigure himself up some entertainment). He had magic, that's why. And she could perform a locater spell in order to find his bloody wand. Grimly she decided to tell nobody of the fact that she had indeed been worried sick. She decided to just pop in with her parents and see how that was going for a few moments, if she was already here, before locating one huge mess of a man.
She rang her doorbell and her father answered. "Hermione?" he asked in surprise. Her mother came hurrying up behind him. "Hermione," she smiled knowingly. "I've been expecting you back here for quite a while now."
"Whatever for, mum?" Hermione asked, surprised, until she glanced behind them and looked at a certain someone munching scones in her kitchen.
"Y-you!" she sputtered, completely in shock. And then, a few seconds later when the anger hit, "I can't believe you!" she roared. "I've been worried sick for the last two hours and you've been sitting here eating scones! How dare you? I cannot believe this! While I have had excruciating experiences with your parents, might I add, you have been sitting here eating my parents out of house and home? I. Simply. Can't. Believe. It. You sodding, arrogant, prickiest prick of a pricking prat!"
Whether her parents were astonished at her display, they didn't say anything. Draco Sodding Malfoy, however, simply grinned and said, "Hold on. Let me get this straight. You were worried sick?" he asked nonchalantly. "Were you worried sick? Aw, was poor little Hermione worried sick about her husband?"
"I HATE YOU!" she snarled helplessly. She had let it slip! Stupid girl; she really had to get control on her tongue.
"Hermione!" her father finally broke in, shocked. "I'm simply astonished! You are talking to your husband, here?"
Draco got up and put a what she supposed could be called comforting (it wasn't) arm on her shoulder. "Baby, calm down! I was just bonding with my in-laws. We've had a lovely time. Hermione, sweety, are you okay?"
Hermione didn't care about the show anymore. Forget what Narcissa and Lucius had said; forget what her parents were going to say; forget it all to hell and back. "Stop lying," she sneered. "Stop it at once."
Draco seemed to sense trouble and immediately started to pacify it. "Sweetheart…you've been drinking again. I didn't know you and Wease—your friends were going to meet at a bar! You've gotten carried away again. Come on, Hermione, let's get you home. Sorry, Ted, Jane… I'm sure you know Hermione can't hold her liquor well. We'll see you later."
The Grangers looked on with horrified surprise as Draco led his almost foaming at the mouth wife out of their house. "Now, baby, say goodbye to your mum and dad," Draco whispered with a smirk.
"Bastard," she whispered back furiously. "Bye mum, bye dad!" she called out loudly and shut the door firmly behind them.
"I cannot believe you!" she yelled once they were outside. "First, first you sit here and eat like a pig while I'm suffering through your parents' stupid demands, and then you tell my parents that I'm drunk?! Do you know how much this is going to bother them?! They probably thought I'd never heard of liquor! I don't know about you but to them, I'm still their little baby girl. And you are totally running it."
Draco opened and closed his mouth wrathfully. "Sorry," he finally said in a tight, clipped voice. "But there was no other way to explain your suddenly hateful behavior," he added.
Hermione sighed as her anger slowly diminished. "Come on, let's go home," she sighed and grabbed his hand, double apparating them to his lavish home.
"Hey," he said. "This isn't your home."
"Now it is," she snapped, and then decided that he did at least deserve an explanation. "Your parents decided that it is. It's only fitting for their only heir to live with his wife."
"Really now?" he asked, surprise dotting his expression as he saw all of her stuff in his house. "What exactly did they say?"
"Oh, the usual. Disgrace to the family name, blah, blah, can't have it leaking out to the press…got to keep it quiet, pretend we're really totally and completely head over heels in love…and I can't work anymore either. Instead I've got to spend my time researching for a possible way for us to get a divorce…" Hermione trailed off, and Draco noticed that she looked very, very upset. "I'm sorry," she apologized. "I shouldn't have been that rude in front of my parents. It's just…I'm so stressed and I really, really don't want to quit work, I mean, who do your parents think they are, and…"
Draco recognized the signs and panicked.
She was going to bawl any second.
As if on cue Hermione started sobbing. Draco backed away. If there was one thing he could not deal with, it was a crying female. Especially if abovementioned crying female was his wife and mortal enemy. Finally he decided he at least had to try to console her. "Shh, Hermione, it's okay," he uncomfortably called from the other side of the room. Okay, not helping.
He moved closer, close enough to awkwardly pat her shoulder. "It's okay. Hey, you know what?" he pledged, "I'll talk to my parents. You'll still be allowed to work, I promise."
"You (sob) mean (sob) it (sob)?" she asked through her tears.
"Yes," he reassured, and was surprised to see that he felt sincere about this, "I do."
"Oh!" If there was one thing Draco had not expected to accompany that oh, it was having Hermione throw her arms around him and hug him in a very tight… and dare he say it…intimate manner.
"Oh," Draco echoed, feeling shy. Oh, indeed.
A/N: Yeah! I've got another chapter done. As usual, I want to know your opinions on this. Hey I just found out that Harry Potter's sixth book is going to be called Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Apparently this is old news but…I just found out recently. Hmm… not quite the title I was expecting (ok, I hadn't heard of it)… and somehow not that appealing, but I don't care! Come on, JK, write, write, write!